Donna Weaver explained and demonstrated wax portraiture, popular
at the time of Lewis and Clark, as well as describing her work at
the Mint. She spoke about Joseph Wright, the first die sinker at
the Mint. "Wright's mother Patience and aunt Rachel worked
in wax so there is a neat tie-in with wax, the Mint and myself,
she says.

The U.S. Mint employs an elite team of five sculptor-engravers
who are entrusted with creating designs and sculptural models for
the production of the Nations coins and medals. All the U.S.
Mint sculptor-engravers work at the Philadelphia Mint Facility,
the only Mint facility that engraves the designs of United States
coins and medals.

In July 2000, Donna Weaver was selected as Sculptor-Engraver at
the United States Mint in Philadelphia. She joined the Mint with
years of sculpting experience. She majored in Fine Arts at the Art
Academy of Cincinnati where she studied sculpting, painting, and
printmaking, graduating in 1966.

Mrs. Weaver and her husband have revived the art of miniature bas-relief
wax portraiture popular in the United States from 1750 until 1840.
These works are produced by sculpting shallow relief portraits in
wax and applying them to reverse painted glass.